Growing up we always ate dinner at the table, without T.V., and as a family. However, there was a period of time that my father worked two jobs so that my mom could continue to stay home with my sister and me. I disliked those nights. My mom would serve us and then she would watch us eat. She would eat later with my dad.
When having one of many “how to raise our child” discussions, we both agreed that we want to eat dinner as a family. In my house, my mom would always be the one to cook. This was because she was a stay-at-home-mom. In Bryan’s house, his parents would share the cooking. Even though we both work full-time outside of the home, I do the majority of the cooking. This is because I get home first. Yet there are many times that we share the cooking responsibilities. I may do the prep work so that Bryan can grill. While he does this, I set the table and prepare any other side dishes that aren’t being grilled that evening.
I know what you’re thinking…he’s only 2! How does he sit that long? Of course I don’t expect my 2 year old to sit at the table the entire time that dinner is happening, but he does sit down with us and eat until he is finished. Then he is allowed to get up and play while we finish our dinner. It is unrealistic to think that a 2 year old has that kind of attention span, but it is important to us that he begin the habit of sitting at the table as a member of the family. Does he always eat? No. Sometimes he eats a little bit, sometimes second and third helpings, other times, he just doesn’t eat at all.
Tonight’s meal:
Mommy: prepared salad, shucked the corn, set the table
Daddy: grilled the chicken, cooked the corn on the grill burner
Derek: played trucks
We worked together and we all sat down to eat together. What did Derek eat? Feta cheese, green olives, and milk. We are still working on actually eating dinner every night.
More information on the importance of eating as a family:
